REGIONAL EARNINGS

TransWorld Tells Drop in Income, Bank Acquisition

TransWorld Bancorp, the Sherman Oaks-based parent of TransWorld Bank, said its first-quarter net income fell 6% and announced that it had acquired Premier Bank in Northridge.

TransWorld's profit for the quarter ended March 31 fell to $450,000 from $479,000 a year ago. The company cited increases in its reserves for credit losses and real estate foreclosures along with an accounting change. TransWorld reported assets of $267 million, up 9% from $246.1 million in last year's first quarter.

TransWorld said it acquired Premier's $50 million of insured deposits and its safe-deposit operations from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. April 8, when Premier went into receivership. Premier had about $55 million in assets.

Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

TransWorld will continue operating Premier's former Thousand Oaks office as a TransWorld branch but will close Premier's Northridge headquarters and Woodland Hills branch May 5.